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Angelic Layer
is a five volume manga series by CLAMP that ran from February 1999 to November 2001 in the magazine Shonen Ace. It centers on a 12 year old girl named Misaki Suzuhara, an aspiring player of Angelic Layer, a fighting game played with dolls controlled by the player's thought. Angelic Layer was CLAMP's first attempt at shonen, and also their fist use of the light, dynamic art style that was later modified for series such as ''Chobits'' and ''Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle''. Angelic Layer takes place in the same universe as Clamp's later work Chobits, which similarly deals with the relationship between humans, human-created devices, toys, and godlike power. Several characters also appear in Clamp's Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle including most of the main characters, as well as the angel, Blanche. The manga was adapted into a 26-episode anime series produced by Studio Bones titled Kidou Tenshi Angelic Layer (Literally, "Battle Doll" or "Mobile Angel" Angelic Layer), which aired on TV Tokyo from April 1, 2001 to September 23, 2001. The anime was compiled into nine volumes in Japan and seven volumes in English, courtesy of ADV films. The manga was published in English by Tokyopop from 2002 to 2003. Plot The primary protagonist of Angelic Layer is Misaki Suzuhara, a seventh grader who just moved to Tokyo to live with her aunt, Shouko Asami. After arriving in the city, she watches the battle doll Athena on a big screen television outside of Tokyo Station and becomes interested in learning about Angelic Layer, a highly popular game in which players (called Deus) buy and custom-design dolls known as Angels. Angels can move by mental control when on a field called the "layer." Layers are very expensive; most users rent them by the hour in establishments resembling cybercafes. An eccentric man wearing a white lab coat and glasses, calling himself "Icchan" (いっちゃん), encourages Misaki to purchase and create her own angel. She names the angel Hikaru, after Hikaru Shido from CLAMP's Magic Knight Rayearth (a manga in Angelic Layer's world), which she was reading on the train to Tokyo, because she wants the angel to be "a short girl, but strong and happy" like Hikaru and herself. In the anime, Misaki names her Hikaru after her favorite doll from her childhood. Even though she's clueless about the game, Misaki soon competes in tournaments and is assisted and watched carefully by Icchan. Later, Icchan's identity is revealed as Ichiro Mihara, the co-creator of Angelic Layer. Misaki also begins studying at the Eriol Academy, an educational institution which includes grades from kindergarten through high school. There she becomes friends with Hatoko Kobayashi, a very intelligent and mature kindergarten girl who is a famous Deus and an Angelic Layer expert. Her incredibly fast angel Suzuka is a favourite contender in tournaments. Misaki also befriends Hatoko's older brother Kotaro Kobayashi and his friend Tamayo Kizaki, a girl fascinated by martial arts. Both turn out to be Misaki's classmates. While adjusting to her new surroundings, Misaki is also gripped by her past. Her thoughts often dwell on her mother, whom she has not seen since pre-school. Eventually Misaki learns that her mother was key in the development of Angelic Layer, which she worked on in an attempt to develop a perfect prosthesis for her multiple sclerosis, which has confined her to a wheelchair. Her mother is also the Deus of Athena and the champion of Angelic Layer. In the manga series, Misaki's mother does not have multiple sclerosis, nor is she depicted in a wheelchair. The ending to the manga also has different couplings. The manga series is set a few years before Chobits, a Clamp work in the same universe as Angelic Layer. In the manga, Icchan plays an important role in the Chobits storyline, but this connection was reduced to a single scene in the anime; the Chobits anime was also made by a different company. Characters Crossovers General CLAMP Universe *In the manga, the prologue pages show faux-newspaper articles that mention tidbits from other series. *Piffle Princess is the store where Misaki buys supplies for Hikaru. This store is also found in other CLAMP creations such as Cardcaptor Sakura, Legal Drug, xxxHolic, and Chobits, but is also Tomoyo's company in Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle. Chobits *On page 16 of volume 7, the story of Kaede Saito's death was told by her brother Minoru. Misaki, Sai, and Ohjiro are in the background standing by her bed crying in one panel. *In volume 7, silhouettes of the legendary Angelic Layer dolls (Shirahime, Blanche, Wizard, Suzuka, and Hikaru) are shown as Chitose tells Motosuwa the truth about her husband's earlier work. Kobato. *Chitose Hibiya of Chobits uses the name 'Chitose Mihara' in Kobato.; the last name of her late husband, Ichiro Mihara. *In Exam 9 of Kobato., Misaki and Tamayo make a brief cameo giving out beer. Cardcaptor Sakura *In volume 9 of Cardcaptor Sakura, Kero is reading an Angelic Layer strategy guide, for the video game he's playing. *In Volume 1 of Angelic Layer, Icchan Mihara sings the season 1 opening song of Cardcaptor Sakura, "Catch You, Catch Me", at a karaoke machine. *Eriol Academy is a Cardcaptor Sakura crossover, Eriol being the name of Clow Reed's reincarnation. Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle *Tamayo, Oujiro, Shouko and the Angelic Layer announcer appeared in Piffle Country, while Kaede and Sai appeared in Rekord Country. *In the country of Infinity in, there is a tournament with some similarities to Angelic Layer battles, where the Deus sits on an egg-shaped chair and telekinetically controls the players. In Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle they are called "chess pieces" instead of "Angels" and often normal people are the pieces. *Hikaru is introduced in Chapter 144 of Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicle as an "automata", a chess piece which Eagle (a crossover character from Magic Knight Rayearth) uses in a one-on-one battle with Sakura and Syaoran. *Sakura and Syaoran wake up in an Angel Egg after being in the Oto Country. They're then met by Chitose Hibiya. *In one panel in volume 6 Misaki, Tamayo, and Ohjiro can be seen being served by Sakura in the Cat's Eye Cafe. *In Oto Country, the lady at the city hall is based on the angel, Blanche. Magic Knight Rayearth *Hikaru appears in Magic Knight Rayearth as one of the main characters. CLAMP School Detectives *In volume 4 of Angelic Layer, Misaki sings cheerfully to herself, "A field of peony pink..." this is a reference to "Peony Pink", the theme song of CLAMP School Detectives. Other Media A postcard collection was released in Japan on October 20, 2001. Category:Manga